Chosen solution

Your "More System Details" doesn't show the VLC plugin. Can you make sure it is not set to "Never Activate"?

You can open the Add-ons page using either:

Ctrl+Shift+a

"3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons

In the left column, click Plugins. Then make sure VLC is set to "Always Activate" or, if you want to give sites permission on a case-by-case basis, "Ask to Activate."

If it is not even listed at all on the Add-ons page, one possible reason for an installed plugin not to apppear on the Add-ons page is if Firefox is set NOT to scan the registry for plugins. Another is that Firefox's settings file storing plugin data has become corrupted. Here are the steps to check those possibilities:

Confirm that Firefox is scanning the registry for plugins

Firefox finds the Flash plugin from a registry entry. Some users have the scanning turned off for some reason. Here's how to check and fix that:

(1) In a new tab, type or paste about:config in the address bar and press Enter. Click the button promising to be careful.

(2) In the filter box, type or paste scan and pause while the list is filtered

(3) If plugin.scan.plid.all is not set to its default value of true, double-click it to toggle it back to the default.

If you changed this setting, exit and restart Firefox to trigger another scan.

If you check the Add-ons page again, success?

If Firefox is set to scan but still does not find VLC and list it on the Add-ons page...

Remove Firefox's plugin registry file

Sometimes the pluginreg.dat file becomes corrupted. You can remove it and have Firefox re-scan for plugins. As a side effect, any plugins you have disabled on the Add-ons page probably will be re-enabled, so you'll need to go back to that page one more time.

Open your current Firefox settings (AKA Firefox profile) folder using either

"3-bar" menu button > "?" button > Troubleshooting Information

Help menu > Troubleshooting Information

type or paste about:support in the address bar and press Enter

In the first table on the page, click the "Show Folder" button to launch a new Windows Explorer window showing your settings files.

Leaving that window open, switch back to Firefox and Exit, either:

"3-bar" menu button > "power" button

File menu > Exit

Pause while Firefox finishes its cleanup, then rename pluginreg.dat to something like pluginreg.old

Start Firefox back up again. (If you want to restore your previous non-private session, use History > Restore Previous Session.)

All Replies (4)

Chosen Solution

Your "More System Details" doesn't show the VLC plugin. Can you make sure it is not set to "Never Activate"?

You can open the Add-ons page using either:

Ctrl+Shift+a

"3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons

In the left column, click Plugins. Then make sure VLC is set to "Always Activate" or, if you want to give sites permission on a case-by-case basis, "Ask to Activate."

If it is not even listed at all on the Add-ons page, one possible reason for an installed plugin not to apppear on the Add-ons page is if Firefox is set NOT to scan the registry for plugins. Another is that Firefox's settings file storing plugin data has become corrupted. Here are the steps to check those possibilities:

Confirm that Firefox is scanning the registry for plugins

Firefox finds the Flash plugin from a registry entry. Some users have the scanning turned off for some reason. Here's how to check and fix that:

(1) In a new tab, type or paste about:config in the address bar and press Enter. Click the button promising to be careful.

(2) In the filter box, type or paste scan and pause while the list is filtered

(3) If plugin.scan.plid.all is not set to its default value of true, double-click it to toggle it back to the default.

If you changed this setting, exit and restart Firefox to trigger another scan.

If you check the Add-ons page again, success?

If Firefox is set to scan but still does not find VLC and list it on the Add-ons page...

Remove Firefox's plugin registry file

Sometimes the pluginreg.dat file becomes corrupted. You can remove it and have Firefox re-scan for plugins. As a side effect, any plugins you have disabled on the Add-ons page probably will be re-enabled, so you'll need to go back to that page one more time.

Open your current Firefox settings (AKA Firefox profile) folder using either

"3-bar" menu button > "?" button > Troubleshooting Information

Help menu > Troubleshooting Information

type or paste about:support in the address bar and press Enter

In the first table on the page, click the "Show Folder" button to launch a new Windows Explorer window showing your settings files.

Leaving that window open, switch back to Firefox and Exit, either:

"3-bar" menu button > "power" button

File menu > Exit

Pause while Firefox finishes its cleanup, then rename pluginreg.dat to something like pluginreg.old

Start Firefox back up again. (If you want to restore your previous non-private session, use History > Restore Previous Session.)

When you return to the Add-ons page, is VLC finally there?

Your "More System Details" doesn't show the VLC plugin. Can you make sure it is not set to "Never Activate"?
You can open the Add-ons page using either:
* Ctrl+Shift+a
* "3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons
In the left column, click Plugins. Then make sure VLC is set to "Always Activate" or, if you want to give sites permission on a case-by-case basis, "Ask to Activate."
----
If it is not even listed at all on the Add-ons page, one possible reason for an installed plugin not to apppear on the Add-ons page is if Firefox is set NOT to scan the registry for plugins. Another is that Firefox's settings file storing plugin data has become corrupted. Here are the steps to check those possibilities:
'''Confirm that Firefox is scanning the registry for plugins'''
Firefox finds the Flash plugin from a registry entry. Some users have the scanning turned off for some reason. Here's how to check and fix that:
(1) In a new tab, type or paste <strong>about:config</strong> in the address bar and press Enter. Click the button promising to be careful.
(2) In the filter box, type or paste <strong>scan</strong> and pause while the list is filtered
(3) If <strong>plugin.scan.plid.all</strong> is not set to its default value of true, double-click it to toggle it back to the default.
If you changed this setting, exit and restart Firefox to trigger another scan.
If you check the Add-ons page again, success?
<em>If Firefox is set to scan but still does not find VLC and list it on the Add-ons page...</em>
'''Remove Firefox's plugin registry file'''
Sometimes the pluginreg.dat file becomes corrupted. You can remove it and have Firefox re-scan for plugins. As a side effect, any plugins you have disabled on the Add-ons page probably will be re-enabled, so you'll need to go back to that page one more time.
Open your current Firefox settings (AKA Firefox profile) folder using either
* "3-bar" menu button > "?" button > Troubleshooting Information
* Help menu > Troubleshooting Information
* type or paste '''about:support''' in the address bar and press Enter
In the first table on the page, click the "Show Folder" button to launch a new Windows Explorer window showing your settings files.
Leaving that window open, switch back to Firefox and Exit, either:
* "3-bar" menu button > "power" button
* File menu > Exit
Pause while Firefox finishes its cleanup, then rename '''pluginreg.dat''' to something like pluginreg.old
Start Firefox back up again. (If you want to restore your previous non-private session, use History &gt; Restore Previous Session.)
When you return to the Add-ons page, is VLC finally there?

What version of VLC did you install? Firefox is a 32-bit application and I'm not sure whether the 64-bit version of VLC includes a 32-bit plugin for Firefox.
* http://www.videolan.org/vlc/download-windows.html